Summary of Used Car Lemon Law

Summary:

New York’s law requires dealers to provide warranties on all used cars sold for more than $ 1,500 and with less than 100,000 miles. If the vehicle had less than 36,000 miles when sold, the warranty must last 90 days or 4,000 miles. The warranty must provide coverage for certain specified components like the engine and transmission. All states provide a time or mileage minimum for warranties, whichever occurs first.

Details:

NEW YORK (GEN. BUS. LAW § 198-B)

New York establishes a consumer's right to return a vehicle and obtain a refund or replacement if a dealer cannot make a vehicle conform to its warranty after a reasonable number of repair attempts and establishes an arbitration procedure.

Warranty Term

The term of the warranty is based on usage. A warranty must last: 90 days or 4,000 miles if the vehicle has 36,000 miles or less; 60 days or 3,000 miles if the vehicle has been operated more than 36,000 miles but less than 80,000 miles; and 30 days or 1,000 miles if the vehicle has been operated 80,000 miles or more but less than 100,000 miles.

Warranty Coverage

The law requires dealers to provide a written warranty when selling a used motor vehicle that covers certain specified components, including the engine, transmission, drive axle, brakes, radiator, steering, and the

ignition system excluding the battery. The warranties may exclude defects due to lack of maintenance, collision, abuse, theft, vandalism, and other specified causes including odometer tampering.

Standard for Returning a Vehicle

A consumer may return the vehicle and obtain a refund if a dealer cannot repair a defect that substantially impairs the vehicles value after (1) the same defect has been the subject of repair three or more times and it has not be corrected or (2) the vehicle has been out of service for repair for 15 days during the warranty period. Days when the dealer cannot make the repair because parts are unavailable do not count toward the deadline if the dealer is exercising due diligence to obtain the parts. But a consumer is entitled to a refund or replacement vehicle if the vehicle has not been repaired after 45 days.

Notification of Rights

The law requires dealers to give buyers a notice entitled, "Used Car Lemon Law Bill of Rights. " The notice describes a consumer's rights under the law. The law makes void any waiver of rights signed by the consumer. Further, the law does not limit in any way a consumer's rights under other laws.

Informal Dispute Resolution

If a dealer operates or participates in an informal dispute resolution procedure that complies in all respects with regulations implementing the federal Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, a consumer must use the procedure before enforcing his rights to return a vehicle and receive a refund. A dealer has 30 days to comply with an arbitrator's order. If he fails to do so, a consumer, in addition to other recovery, is entitled to $ 25 per business day up to a maximum of $ 500.

Penalty

If the motor vehicles commissioner determines that a dealer failed to comply for over 60 days, he may suspend or revoke his registration.

A consumer who resorted to an informal dispute resolution procedure is not precluded from asserting other legal rights. In suits to enforce this law, the court may award reasonable attorney's fees to a prevailing plaintiff or to a consumer who prevails in any judicial proceeding arising out of arbitration.

Exclusions

The law does not establish a required warranty for (1) vehicles operated more than 100,000 miles (2) sold for less than $ 1,500, or (3) "historical vehicles" as defined in the New York motor vehicle code.